With its strength, light weight, and affordability, Aluminum is an ideal material for milling certain components. Though this material is widely used in machinists shops, without the correct end mills, Aluminum can quickly wear down your cutting tools. Having the right End Mills For Aluminum is crucial to making sure that you can reliably produce aluminum parts without having to deal with expected tool failure.

When you are milling Aluminum, you need a cutting tool that has a high metal removal rates. Though Aluminum is a softer metal than steel, it can quickly produce small particulate that can build up on your end mill. This material build-up can increase the friction on your end mill. When your end mill doesn’t remove metal efficiently, this increase in friction will overheat your end mill and lead to a significantly decreased tool life.

The correct end mills for aluminum are specifically designed to achieve superior chip evacuation compared to other materials. If aluminum isn’t expelled from the site of the cut quickly, the milled aluminum can easily heat and recompact. This can cause unsightly scratches on your piece and damage to the cutting edge of your tools. In order to avoid this, you need to be sure you’ve chosen the correct end mill before starting your project.

The key to achieving these features lies in flute design. Typical aluminum cutting tools feature 2 or 3 flutes to remove metal far more rapidly than end mills for steel which feature more flutes. The rake angles on these flutes also add to the end mills stock removal speed.

Aluminum is a sticky metal, so a high helix angle to your flutes will expel the shavings quickly. Ideal end mills designed to cut aluminum should feature a helix angle greater than 35°. This angle ensures that the shavings are rapidly expelled upward. High helix angles also make it easier to enter a cut, resulting in a quieter cut and an excellent surface finish.

At Online Carbide, we manufacture a line of end mills designed to make machining aluminum quick and easy. All of our end mills are ground from the highest quality carbide stock to ensure a long tool life and a sturdy cutting edge. These carbide end mills feature a 37° helix angle and a 3 flute design. We offer these end mills in diameters ranging from ⅛” to ¾”. All of our end mills for aluminum are coated with zirconium nitride, a ceramic material that provides excellent resistance to wear on the cutting edges of your tools.

So if your shop works with aluminum, make sure you have end mills that can stand up to this unique material. At Online Carbide, we pride ourselves in offering high performance end mills made right here in the USA. Visit us today to find the end mills your shop needs at manufacturer direct pricing. You’re sure to find amazing deals on all of the end mills you need for your projects when you visit our website.